Period Pain
by Marie Tan ‘21
When I told my dad I got my period, he was excited. “You know in China, we give our neighbors red rice when a daughter has her period!” Please don’t do that, I told my dad.
Read MoreJust Girly Things, But Kombucha
by Christina Lin ‘21
The connection between kombucha and Christine de Pizan’s The Book of the City of Ladies isn’t immediately obvious: how can a jar of sour tea possibly be philosophical? The baseline of comparison is its structure—the starter tea is Lady Justice, the pellicle is Lady Reason, and the yeast is Lady Rectitude. Pizan’s descriptions of the nature of women parallels conceptions we have of kombucha, but it may allow us greater insight into the nature of the inherently variable.
Read MoreWomansplaining Mansplaining
by Vanessa Ntungwanayo ‘21
I think this is what makes mansplaining such an insidious phenomenon. To partake in it is to have the privilege of knowing that should you be wrong or appear abrasive, you have nothing to lose.
Read MoreHow Climate Changes Everything
by Anonymous
CW: descriptions of natural disaster
I’m from Southwest Florida, and you can bet anyone who lives in the Gulf Coast region has witnessed a hurricane. Though they are a fairly common occurrence, the effects can be devastating to the families in communities hit the hardest. No hurricane impacted my family as significantly as Hurricane Irma.
Read MoreI Have Two Moms, But They Live in Different Languages
by Audrea Huang ‘22
CW: death of a parent
I grew up in a hospital.
Soft jazz fills the hallways as I hold my brother’s hand, searching for Mom’s new room.
Read MoreAre We Overreacting?
A Response to Anne Helen Petersen’s Too Fat, Too Slutty, Too Loud
by Lia James ‘21
CW: discussion of a racial slur
One may argue whether including the word in the written version of the book is crossing a line. Regardless, hearing the word in her own voice moved something in me. In not censoring herself in the audiobook, Petersen has normalized it. She has okayed it. She has set a precedent.
Read MoreThe Pros of Dorm Living
by Ely Willard ‘20
As I make my way through my senior year, I keep getting prematurely nostalgic for this place, even though I’m still here. And one of the things I know I’ll miss, strange as it may sound, is living in a dorm.
Read MoreSoup Rat
by Mable Peach ‘23
In the age of Disney+, one must reflect on the Pixar legacy left by films like A Bug’s Life, The Incredibles, and Toy Story. Often unappreciated and overlooked, though, is the cinematic classic Soup Rat, a charming tale of one gifted rat and his experiences in the third-floor kitchen of Wellesley College’s Tower Court East dorm.
Read MoreConversations with my Grandmother
by Zoë Owens ‘22
CW: implications of eating disorders
She didn’t look at me as she said it. It was almost like she wasn’t saying it to me; she was saying it to get it out of her head and off of her heart.
Read MoreOn Explanation
By Parker Piscitello-Fay ‘22
I have two beautiful mothers, an amazing younger sister, a sperm donor father, and at least three half-siblings. I don’t know how to explain how this feels to strangers.
Read MoreMountain Air
By Sage Wentzell-Brehme ‘21
For those who don’t know, Wellesley has an outdoor recreation department that sponsors hiking and rock climbing trips around the region. In a fit of early semester exuberance, I signed up for a hiking trip at the end of October.
Read MoreStretch Marks and Swollen Joints
by Erica Maul ‘21
Content warnings: eating disorders, body dysmorphia
I don’t have a full-length mirror at Wellesley, and this was my first time seeing the stretch marks. I’ve had plenty in my life, and they tell the story of hips sprouting from my pre-teen body several years ago. But I’ve never had them here.
Read More"Gamer Girls": A Concept
by Cheryn Shin ‘20
Those of you who know me know that I play a lot of games, especially League of Legends. For a long time, gaming was—and still is—considered a male-dominated activity.
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